ABSTRACT
Under exceptionally hostile circumstances, the Nepali press has played a watchdog role and kept the public informed. It has exposed numerous social evils including corruption and administrative malfeasance, thereby holding the state apparatus and public officials accountable and pressuring them to enact reforms. The end of the civil war in 2006 after a decade of conflict, extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrest, torture and disappearances has bequeathed a troubling legacy inimical to press freedom. Since then, Nepal has embarked on a democratic transition, but the antagonists remain powerful and influential. The Maoist insurgents now control Parliament, while the security forces remain key institutions of the state. There are many unresolved grievances that represent taboo topics constraining freedom of expression, chief among them transitional justice. The media have to be careful about how they cover the range of human rights abuses inflicted in that era, contributing to the impunity enjoyed by the still powerful perpetrators. Journalists face significant risks just for doing their jobs. Press freedom in Nepal faces a critical watershed as the government has made a series of moves in recent years to constrain the media and limit the freedom of expression. In May 2019, the government proposed new legislation that would greatly undermine the right of press freedom guaranteed in the 2015 Constitution and subject journalists to more extensive government control and political meddling.
